Documenting the American South

Monument Name

Andrews Geyser, Old Fort

Type

Public Space

Fountain

Marker

Subjects

Geography

Industry

City

Old Fort

County

McDowell

Description

Rectangular pillar four feet tall of masonry and various shapes of local stones. Inset into the front is a metal plaque with the inscription.

Images: Inscription on the Andrews Geyser Marker | Closeup view of the Andrews Geyser | Andrews Geyser Marker | Rear view of the marker | View of the park with the geyser and other markers and memorials | NC Highway Sign | Information plaque about the Swannanoa Gap Engagement

Inscription

THIS GEYSER WAS BUILT IN 1912 BY GEORGE / FISHER BAKER OF NEW YORK, AS A TRIBUTE TO HIS FRIEND / COLONEL ALEXANDER BOYD ANDREWS, OF RALEIGH, / NORTH CAROLINA, AND IN APPRECIATION FOR THE GREAT / PUBLIC SERVICE HE RENDERED IN THE DEVELOPMENT AND / UPBUILDING OF WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA.

ANDREWS GEYSER WAS RESTORED IN 1976 BY THE / TOWN OF OLD FORT, WITH CONTRIBUTIONS FROM THE / PEOPLE OF WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA, AND DEDICATED / AS A PUBLIC PARK, FOR THE USE AND ENJOYMENT OF ALL.

YOUR COOPERATION IN CARING FOR THESE / FACILITIES WILL BE APPRECIATED AND INSURE THE / USE OF ANDREWS GEYSER AS A PARK, FOR THE BENEFIT / OF FUTURE GENERATIONS.

Custodian

Town of Old Fort

Dedication Date

May 16, 1976

Decade

1970s

Geographic Coordinates

35.651300 , -82.241360 View in Geobrowse

Supporting Sources

Conley, Mike. “Old Forts Finest,” The McDowell News (Marion, NC), September 12, 2012

McAfee, Hoyt. “Andrews Geyser, Prime Showplace,” The Charlotte Observer (Charlotte, NC), December 12, 1937

Steelman, Bennett L., 1979. “Andrews, Alexander Boyd,” NCpedia.org, (accessed August 28, 2023) Link

“Andrew's Geyser Along the Line of Southern Railroad at Round Knob, N.C. In the Land of the Sky,” in Durwood Barbour Collection of North Carolina Postcards (PO77), North Carolina Collection Photographic Archives, The Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Link

“Andrews Geyser Again a Major Scenic Show,” The Asheville Times (Asheville, NC), May 17, 1976

“Andrews Geyser,” Marion Progress (Marion, NC), October 1, 1931

“Andrews Geyser,” The Historical Marker Database, HMdb.org, (accessed August 23, 2023) Link

“Geyser Fountain, Erected at Round Knob, to the Memory of Col. A.B. Andrews,” in Durwood Barbour Collection of North Carolina Postcards (PO77), North Carolina Collection Photographic Archives, The Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Link

“Historical Structures Survey Report-Andrews Geyser,” North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, June 7, 2023, (accessed October 2, 2023) Link

“Marker: N-37, North Carolina Historical Marker Program, North Carolina Office of Archives & History — Department of Cultural Resources, (accessed August 26, 2023) Link

“Restoration... Famed Andrews Geyser Will Spout Again!” Asheville Citizen-Times (Asheville, NC), April 25, 1976

Public Site

Yes

Materials & Techniques

Stone, metal

Sponsors

Andrews Geyser Committee

Subject Notes

Andrews Geyser is a man-made rather than natural creation first constructed in 1890 (some sources say 1883 or 1885) at a slightly different location as a tourist attraction. It was built on the grounds of Round Knob Lodge and marked the “gateway” to the Blue Ridge Mountains. It was situated adjacent to Southern Railway tracks to be visible from either side of passenger trains as they looped over the mountain. It was created by damming a small stream about two miles away and 200 feet higher in elevation using gravity to generate a waterspout up to 250 feet high. Round Knob Lodge burned in 1903 and the geyser fell into disrepair.

In 1910 a wealthy New York banker, George Fisher Baker began restoring the geyser. He moved the geyser about 75 yards from the original location to land owned by Southern Railway and named it in honor of his friend Alexander Boyd Andrews, then a Southern Railway vice-president. With the decline of passenger rail service the geyser was again allowed to fall into disrepair. In 1975 Southern Railway deeded the geyser and two acres to the town of Old Fort. The town created a restoration fund and the repaired geyser was re-dedicated on May 6, 1976. The 100th anniversary of the completion of George Baker’s restoration was held September 22, 2012 with another geyser re-dedication. The landmark is historically associated with the construction of the railroad and the economic benefits the railroad brought to western North Carolina.

Location

The approximate 10 acre park with the geyser is on Mill Creek Road (County Road 1407) several miles outside of Old Fort, NC.

Landscape

Four other markers and memorials dot the open grass covered landscape near Andrews Geyser. Present are a North Carolina Civil War Trails information plaque about the Swannanoa Gap Engagement in 1865, a memorial to Col. A.B. Andrews, a memorial to Incarcerated Railroad Workers, and a memorial to McDowell County Civil War soldiers.